Dubai Metro Expansion Resumes on Schedule

Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has denied that the expansion of the Dubai Metro beyond Jebel Ali is to be delayed, and insisted the project is still on schedule.

According to Arabian Business, it was reported last week that Shahrin Abdol Salam, chief engineer of rail operations at the RTA, said the authority hopes to begin work on the Route 2020 metro expansion project in the second half of 2016.

RTA had explained; a statement in May that it intended to announce the consortium winning the project construction work on 28 January, 2016, with construction starting shortly later on.

An RTA official denied this was the case, and said it is “initial mobilisation works” that are due to start in the first quarter of 2016, not the actual construction.

Muna Alosaimi, the RTA’s director of rail planning and projects development, said: “The progress of works for the expansion of the Dubai Metro line (Route 2020) are according to schedule.

“As we announced earlier this year, construction works which are the initial mobilisation works will commence as soon as the consortium is announced in first quarter of next year, followed by actual construction towards the second half of the year,” he reportedly continued.

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The new stations will serve residential areas such as Discovery Gardens, Furjan, Jumeirah Golf Estate and the Dubai Investment Park.